Good Medicine
by DeutchRemy
Summary: Alara is severely injured during a run-in with some rogue Xelayans. This chronicles her recovery in an alien hospital. In progress. PLEASE R&R.
1. Chapter 1

Alara's POV  
22:32

Everything hurts. My arms, my legs, my belly, my back, my head. I turn my head to the side and my vision swims so I close my eyes. That doesn't help; just feels like I'm floating… I try to regulate my breathing to quash the pain-and-fear-induced nausea that's creeping up on me as a man wearing a cap and mask approaches me with a needle.

Where's Claire? I'd feel a lot better if I could just catch a glimpse of her or hear her voice...

The edges of my vision start to shimmer…I think I'm ready to pass out any second now…

Pass out or die. One of those. Mommy. Daddy. I love you both so much. I'm sorry I was such a disappointment to you…

An oxygen mask is fitted over my face, and something horrible-smelling invades my nostrils…


	2. Chapter 2

Alara's POV

04:35

I can't breathe. I'm choking. There's something blocking my airway and I'm trying to cough to expel it, but I can't. I try again. Nothing.

I shiver, feel the prickle of goosebumps on my arms. Why's it so cold in here?

Voices above me, talking among themselves. Women's voices. They sound nice; I don't think I'm in danger here, but where is Claire? Surely I should at least hear her voice. Is she not running the show here?

" _I think she's starting to breathe on her own…yep, there's a nice cough. Alright, let's get ready to extubate._ "

I'm rolled over onto my side without warning.

A calm, soothing motherly voice: " _Alara? Alara, can you hear me? Can you squeeze my hand, sweetheart?_ "

Every muscle in my body feels like jello right now but I manage a tiny squeeze before my arm flops back down onto the bed like a wet noodle. The word "ragdoll" pops into my head.

" _Good girl_."

" _Can we get some suction? I think she may have regurgitated a bit_."

Someone sticks some sort of metal straw in my mouth; it's loud and makes a horrible wet sucking sound. The metallic taste makes me want to throw up. I try to raise my hand to push away whoever's manning the thing but I still have very limited use of my limbs. My effort doesn't go unnoticed, though.

" _She's getting agitated; how are her airway reflexes? I'd like to get this tube pulled in thirty seconds or less._ "

" _She's coughing, that's good enough for me_."

" _Okay, Alara, you're doing so well. We're gonna get this tube out now, so give me a nice big cough, okay?_ "

I try my best and in one swift movement something long and plasticky is pulled from my throat, and I gag violently, nearly vomiting. I inhale desperately, loudly; it feels like my lungs aren't working and I panic before beginning to hack my lungs up. Tears fill my eyes.

" _Cough,_ _honey_. _Good girl, keep coughing._ " She wipes my mouth with a cloth and then straps an oxygen mask to my face. " _Take niiiiiiice deep breaths and keep coughing for me. Good girl._ " She rubs circles between my shoulder blades and gives my back two nice thumps for good measure. " _The oxygen should make you feel better._ "

She's right. The feeling of cool oxygen flowing down my throat and filling my lungs is nothing short of heavenly. It soothes the burn and as I lie on my side, sucking in this lovely gas, someone tucks a thick warm blanket around me. It feels amazing, like someone just took it out of an oven. Finally comfortable, I begin to drift off…


	3. Chapter 3

Ed's POV  
05:12

Few things are as bad as trying to doze off in a hospital waiting room chair. There's the constant chatter of nurses, the beeping of machines from two doors down...the guy sitting across from you hacking his lungs up.

"Are you two with Miss…Alara Kitan?" A woman with too much makeup on appears in front of us, clipboard in hand.

"Yes! Yes, we are. How is she?" I bolt out of my seat.

"She's out of surgery. I'll take you to see her now."

"Kel? Wake up." I nudge Kelly's foot with my own.

"Hmm? Wha-what happened?" Her knuckles are imprinted on her cheek from her sleeping position.

"Grab your stuff. We're following her."

"How's Alara? Is she alright?" Kelly's voice is muddled from sleep and she stumbles a bit as she stands and picks up the clear plastic bag containing Alara's personal effects - clothes, communicator, etc.

"She's out of surgery and doing well. She's in the post-op ward right now but will be moved to a recovery room shortly."

She leads us through a seemingly endless series of corridors and double doors that require a card to open. Finally we enter a gently-lit room with twenty or so beds but only four or five current occupants.

"She's in bed #6. Her nurse will answer any questions you may have."

"Thank you so much…" I lean in closer to see her name tag, "Ro'Shaarra."

Kelly and I make our way over to bed #6 as quietly as we can. The beeping monitors and chatting nurses certainly aren't quiet but I like to think of myself as a respectful guy. Kelly, too. Respectful, that is, not a guy.

Alara's on her right side, asleep, the thin tubes of a nasal oxygen cannula attached to her cheeks with pink tape that's been cut into heart shapes. She has two blankets on - one that's wrapped around her like a burrito and another that's draped over her - and at the moment looks pretty darn comfy.

A young woman wearing pink scrubs stands to the side of the bed, jotting things down on a clipboard. She glances at the vital signs monitor, makes one final notation, then extends her hand to me.

"Hi there, I'm Yavi. I'm the post-op nurse. Nice to meet you."

"Hi, Yavi. I'm Ed Mercer. You can call me Ed." I shake her hand. "This is Kelly Grayson. You can call her Kelly. I'm glad to see that our chief of security is in such good hands here."

"Nice to meet you, Yavi." Kelly breaks in. "How is she doing?"

"She's doing pretty well, all things considered. All of her vital signs are a bit elevated, which we suspect is due to stress. It's actually pretty common in trauma cases such as this. She's slightly hypothermic, as well, which is normal when coming out of anesthesia. As a matter of fact, she could use another blanket. If you'll excuse me for just one minute."

Kelly bends down and moves a few strands of hair out of Alara's face, careful to avoid the sutured laceration next to her temple. "You think she's in pain?" She asks me, a slight pout on her face.

"Not at the moment." Yavi is returning swiftly, a folded white blanket in her hands. "She's still sleeping off the drugs we gave her. As long as they keep her knocked out they should keep the pain knocked out as well, for the most part at least." She unfolds the blanket and lays it across the patient. "As a matter of fact, I wouldn't expect any coherent conversation out of her for six hours at least. It takes a lot of anesthesia to keep a patient under for that amount of time."

"Can we sit with her?"

"Of course you can. There are a couple of chairs here for you. Let me just move a couple of these cords out of your way."

Kelly wastes no time in plopping down in one of the offered chairs. She reaches out to touch Alara's new blanket. "Ooh, it's nice and toasty."

"I can get you one if you'd like. As you can see it's a bit of a slow day so we have plenty of blankets."

"No no, please, I'm fine." Kelly waves her off, not wanting to be a bother. "I, uh, I like the tape," she indicates Alara's cheeks, "It's a nice touch."

"She kept pulling the oxygen cannula out in her sleep. That tape is actually from the pediatric ward - kids are much more prone to pulling on tubes and the like."

"You know I'm actually not surprised at all that you had to resort to _taping_ her oxygen supply to her face." I chuckle. "A force of nature, that one."

"You know, we've only had a handful of Xelayans come through here. Only two lived up to our expectations thanks to some adverse drug reactions. The rest were sort of - and I know this sounds horrible - letdowns. We were ready for some serious displays of strength and never got to see them. Anyway, Alara lost enough blood that it's safe to say she'll be out of commission for a little while. We'll be moving her up to a room in about a half hour, once the surgeon comes in for her post-op check. I don't know when you two last ate but there's a cafeteria down the hall; you could grab a bite to eat if you're hungry and then come back."

I had ignored my hunger until she mentioned food. Now my stomach's gurgling audibly. "Kel? You hungry?"

"Oh god, at this hour? Way too early. I would kill for a coffee, though." She yawns and slouches down in her chair. "How about you go get some breakfast for yourself and bring me back a coffee, and I'll stay here with Alara? Oh, and please - if you get an egg sandwich or anything with eggs in it promise me you'll eat it there and not bring it back here? Or I _will_ throw up on you."

Ooh, there's the cranky early morning Kelly I remember. Good times, good times. I head towards the double doors and then stop, turning around. "You know, Kel, there is one - I repeat, one - positive thing about this situation."

"And that would be…?"

"Well, she might say some funny things as she comes out of the anesthesia."

Aaaaaaaand, Kelly's not laughing. I take my leave.


	4. Chapter 4

Kelly's POV  
05:37

The surgeon came in earlier than expected so Alara was whisked away to an upstairs room before Ed got back from the cafeteria.

So here we are, in a small private room. They initially tried to stick Alara in a shared room - with a middle aged male roommate. I've heard stories about the men of this planet. I made it clear to the head nurse that over my dead body would she be put at risk of being molested and to please find her a female roommate. I also told them that the Union would pay extra for a private room, which, as it turns out, was all they had left. So Alara's safe and snug as a bug in her bed under at least three warm blankets, me lounging in one of the bedside recliners that this hospital found room in their budget for. This planet might have medicine comparable to a few hundred years ago on Earth, but at least they strive to make their visitors as comfortable as their patients. This time I gladly accepted the offer of a blanket, thinking I could doze for a bit.

I wonder where Ed is. I hope my coffee isn't cold by the time that bumbling idiot finally decides to ask for directions…

I'm sorry, that's harsh. I think it's the stress and lack of sleep talking. I mean, sure, the man can certainly be an idiot, and he can certainly be bumbling, too, but clearly I once saw something in him. I wouldn't have married him if I hadn't.

Aaaaaand…speak of the devil. He has two coffees and a brown paper bag in his left hand and a bouquet of flowers and stuffed animal in his right. That's what I once saw in him - his big heart.

I smirk. "That took you long enough. Was getting worried I'd have to send out a search party again."

"Oh my god, that happened _one_ time, and we were in Boston! You know the Puritans were all high as kites when they laid out the city!"

"Hmm...no, I don't think the Puritans approved of recreational drug use."

"You know what I mean."

"I do. I think I'm getting punchy. Aww, are those flowers for me? Ed, you shouldn't have!"

"Very funny. And the stuffed…whatever it is…isn't for you, either."

"Yeah, what is that? Looks kind of like a monkey."

"I haven't the slightest. You wouldn't believe how many stuffed animals I had to sort through before I found one slightly resembling an Earth creature."

"But Alara's not from Earth."

"Good point." Ed places the coffee, flowers, and bag on the small table and sits down in the seat next to me, the toy still in his hands. "I was hoping to find one that looked like a frog, but it's probably for the best that I didn't."

"Why's that?"

"Because if Alara squeezes the stuffing out of this thing in her sleep I won't be heartbroken."

Ed stands back up with a low groan, clearly stiff from spending the night in a waiting room chair, and places Mr. Monkey on the bedside table next to the vase of flowers.

"Hopefully it'll be the first thing she sees when she wakes up." He gives my arm a playful nudge before getting serious. "Crap, you don't think it'll scare her, do you?"

"Well, it's not a clown. Don't think she cares much for those anymore."

Ed picks up the paper bag and coffee and hands them to me. "So, turns out this planet doesn't have coffee, but they have tea. This was labeled as extra-caffeinated, so I put three bags in yours."

Tea. Oh goodie.

"And, uh, I know you said you're not hungry but I know that you'll be hungry later. It's like a pastry or something. I don't know what kind of fruit is in it but everything there smelled good, so I wouldn't be too worried."

I smile in spite of myself. "Thanks, Ed."

"She woken up yet?"

"Once, when the surgeon came in for the post-op check. I really hope she wakes up better next time."

He takes a sip of his tea and furrows his brow. "What do you mean?"

"Oh my god, she was shaking. I don't know if she was cold or disoriented or what, but she just kept shaking and making these gasping noises. The doctor just said that she was 'remembering the tube that was in there' or something like that. It was awful."

"Poor thing. It was probably scarier for you than for her, though. I doubt she has any memory of it at all. I think we're all so used to her being strong, brave Alara that we get scared when we see her as… _not_ strong, brave Alara. So what happened then, did they sedate her or what?"

"No, she just fell back asleep."

"Well, let's hope she sleeps most of the anesthesia off before she wakes up next time. Kinda like…one of those old 21st Century airplanes burning off fuel before a crash-landing."

What's he going on about? He must notice my confused look so he elaborates.

"…You know, to minimize the risk of them…exploding…?"

"Oh, I get it. Sorry Ed, but I'm going on 24 hours with no sleep. Excuse me if I'm a little slow to get your references."

Ed smiles and gives my knee a light squeeze. "I'm sorry, Kel. So I uh, heard you threw a bit of a hissy at the head nurse."

"I did not 'throw a hissy'. Okay, maybe a little. What I was doing was advocating for my crewmate who is currently unable to speak or fend for herself."

"What are you talking about?"

"They were going to put her in a shared room with a man - a middle aged man who looked far too mobile for my comfort. Surely you've heard about the men of this planet?"

"I have, but a bit of research on the subject will tell you that a bit of an 'enlightenment' has been occurring on this planet over the past 50 years and that men have a very different attitude towards women. Call it a massive case of 'getting in touch with their feminine sides'. I'll bet it's something in the water."

"Well, I wasn't willing to take the risk. Call it 'women's intuition'."

"To be honest, I don't blame you. Look, I hate my gender being stereotyped as much as the next guy, but keeping Alara safe is my number one priority, just as it is yours. If we have to be a bit un-PC to accomplish that, so be it. Now get some rest. You look exhausted."


	5. Chapter 5

Alara's POV  
05:55

I was so warm and toasty and then somebody came and pulled my blankets off. Who would do such a thing? Come to think of it, where am I? Unconsciously I let out a low moan and flop my free arm over my face. That'll keep me warm, right? Yeah, probably.

" _Don't kink your IV, hun_." The same person who stole my blankets is now moving my arm off of my face and straightening it out. " _I'm sorry, hun, I'm just adjusting one of your heart monitor leads. Then you can go back to sleep for as long as you want, okay?_ "

My head hurts. All over. I clamp my eyes tightly shut and moan again. There's a stinging feeling near my belly button and a dull throb in my knee. My chest aches with every breath. Overall it feels like I've been run over. Oh my gosh, is that what happened? Whatever it was that ran me over, it was probably being driven by John or Gordon, or both. Those idiots.

My mouth is as dry as that roasted turkey the captain told me to try during his "giving thanks" celebration last week. I try to swallow but the lack of moisture makes my throat spasm and I begin coughing instead. A series of painful, dry hacks with loud wheezing in between. I feel like I'm going to throw up.

" _It's alright. Your throat's irritated from the breathing tube that was in there._ " The nurse begins to rub circles on my back. " _Just breathe slowly through your nose and the feeling will pass._ "

I do as she says and begin to feel a bit better. The tears come anyway, though, leaking under my closed eyelids and dotting the pillow under my head. I squeeze my eyes shut and cry as quietly as I can. I hear the groan of a chair and the light thud of boots on the linoleum, and then someone's stroking my hair and resting their palm on my forehead. Such a mom behavior…could it be? Oh please, please let it be mom! I open my teary eyes and squint against the lights. It's…Kelly, not mom. I like Kelly, but when you're not feeling well there's no better comfort in the world than resting your head on mommy's boobs.

" _Aww, it's gonna be okay, Alara._ " She says gently in a voice one might use on a wounded puppy. " _You're alright._ "

"Where's…mom?" I croak out, still expecting to see her somewhere or hear her voice from across the room.

" _Oh, mom's not here, sweetie. But I tell you what - as soon as we get in contact with the Orville we're going to have them get in touch with your parents, okay?_ "

"Hm-hmm…I'm cold."

 _"We're gonna get you another blanket, okay?"_

" _Go back to sleep, Alara. We'll be here when you wake up._ " That's the captain's voice, I think, but it sounds so far away and I don't think I have the energy to…open my eyes again…


	6. Chapter 6

Ed's POV  
07:10

Alara's sound asleep again. Kelly's snoozing in her recliner with a gossip magazine covering her face. I could really use a nap too but my time would be much better spent trying to contact the ship. Aside from the occasional vital signs check, the medical staff seems to be letting Alara sleep, so I close the blinds against the rising sun, switch off the lights, and head out into the hallway.

The ship should have been back in this system ten hours ago, so I don't know why I can't get through to them. Damn stupid communicator.

"Have you tried turning it off and then on again?"

Where did that come from? I look down at the floor and am greeted by a Jelly, a female one, by the looks of it. Think Yaphit with bright red lipstick and a sultry voice.

"No, I haven't, but I think I'll give it a shot. Thanks."

"My pleasure. Oh, and if you're looking for a good time, you can find me at the nurses station." She slithers off and I take a moment to process the fact that I just got propositioned by a Jelly who also happens to be a nurse at this hospital. I shake my head to get rid of the awful thought and get back to the matter at hand.

I turn my communicator off, wait the minimum five seconds, then turn it on again.

"Mercer to Orville, do you read?"

Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Shit.

You know what, I'm not gonna panic. I know Gordon well enough to know that he never adheres to timetables. His reasoning? He doesn't want to be predictable. I'll try again in a couple hours. Alara may not currently have the benefit of modern medicine, but she's out of the woods, and once we get back to the Orville Claire will complete the healing process.

I tiptoe back into the room and blindly make my way over to the couch. I stretch out on it and close my eyes, Kelly's tiny snores (that she'll deny until her ass bleeds) and Alara's soft breathing lulling me to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Kelly's POV  
08:15

I'm jolted awake by a knock at the door. Why's it so dark? I can't see my hand in front of my face…Oh my god, I'm blind! I lurch forward into a sitting position and the magazine falls into my lap. Oh, right…

An older red-headed woman wearing a white lab coat is standing in the open doorway, knuckles poised to knock again. She's smiling at me, having been witness to my little mishap.

"Oh, uh, hi." I say sheepishly, hoisting my aching body out of the seat and walking over to her.

"Good morning. I'm Dr. Elgae, Alara's surgeon."

"Kelly Grayson, I think we met downstairs." We shake hands anyway. "Uh, that's actually my boss over there on the couch. I think he's been hoping to speak to you."

I bend over and lightly smack Ed's bicep. "Wake up, the doctor's here."

"Oh, jeez!" He bolts off the couch, straightening his clothes. "So nice to meet you, Doctor." He shakes her hand then hastily picks at the corners of his eyes to rid them of any crud.

"Likewise." She walks over to Alara and picks up her chart from its holder on the end of the bed, then checks her ID bracelet. Thorough.

"Alara? Alara, can you open your eyes for me?"

Nothing.

"Alara, I know you're tired, but I need you awake for this."

A pair of hazel eyes slowly open then squeeze themselves shut again.

"Are the lights too bright? I can turn them down a bit." Dr. Elgae hits a switch on the wall and the lights dim. "Is that better?"

Alara shakes her head slowly.

"How about now?"

"Um…a bit…" Her voice is hoarse.

"Does the light hurt your eyes?"

She nods and weakly lays the crook of her right elbow over her eyes, not caring that her IV port is leaving an imprint on the bridge of her nose.

"Does it help when you do that?"

A tiny nod.

"Okay, well you do have a concussion, so light sensitivity is normal. Now, can you tell me your name?"

"Alara."

"And how old are you?"

"24 next week."

"Good girl. What's today's date?"

"Um…I don't know…"

"Well, you're not from this planet, so I'll let that one slide. Do you know why you were brought in here last night? Do you remember what happened?"

"Mmmm…kind of. It's all…fuzzy."

"Memory loss is normal, too. How's your stomach - are you nauseous at all?"

"Little bit."

"Okay, mind if I pull your blanket down, just a bit? I'd like to look at your arm."

"Mmkay."

The doctor gently lifts Alara's left arm so it lies on top of the blankets. "So, your left arm was broken in three places. One break in the humerus - that's the long bone up here - and two breaks in your radius and ulna, down here. I installed three sets of plates and screws but your ship's doctor should be able to remove them and fuse your bones back together. We simply don't have the funds for that sort of technology yet." She turns her head to address me and Ed. "The major city hospitals receive government funding for such 'luxuries', but apparently a population of one million doesn't qualify us as a major city."

Ooh, if bitterness could kill, we'd all be dead right now.

"Gonna take a peek at your belly now, okay?"

She moves the blankets down lower and pulls Alara's hospital gown up to reveal a knife wound right next to her belly button. It looks better than it did five or so hours ago, but the line of metal staples holding it closed looks gnarly and extremely painful.

Dr. Elgae prods around the wound with her fingers.

Alara groans.

"Sorry, honey."

She palpates various areas of Alara's abdomen with her fingertips.

"Does it hurt when I press here? No, how about here?"

"Ow! Yes!"

Well, if she wasn't awake before…

"I'm sorry. So the reason I was pressing on different parts of your belly is because your attacker stabbed you at an angle - the blade didn't penetrate your abdominal cavity, rather the entire length of it went sideways through muscle, stopping just before it went into the peritoneum. We estimate it was about an eight inch blade, as the damage extends from here," she indicates the entry wound, "to here. You're actually extremely lucky; if the knife had penetrated more shallowly you may have lost a good piece of your abdominal muscles, including your belly button."

Ouch!

I sneak a peak at Ed. He's standing next to the window, arms crossed, white as a sheet. He is _not_ good with medical stuff.

"Ed, you look like you're going to pass out. Sit down."

"I'm fine, I'm fine." He waves me away impatiently.

"If you're feeling faint you should take a seat." Dr. Elgae must be used to saying that, because she doesn't even look up from what she's doing.

"No no, I'm good."

Stubborn male, trying to look strong for the doctor.

"Your call. Just try not to hit your head when you go down."

I like this woman. She reminds me of Claire - super sweet but no nonsense.

Dr. Elgae pulls the gown back down then pulls the blankets up from Alara's legs. The left one looks fine apart from some cuts and scrapes but her right knee is swollen and covered in a massive red-purple bruise. There's a line of staples running directly down the center of the knee. "Your right kneecap was shattered into five pieces -"

"See Ed, I _told_ you it was broken."

"- I reconnected the fragments using wires and screws. Your ship's doctor should be able to fuse it back together but you can't put any weight on that leg until then."

"Okay, now for the neurological exam." She lays the blankets back over Alara's feet and holds up her index finger. "Can you follow my finger? No no, sweetie, don't move your head, move your eyes. Follow to the left…aaaand to the right…alright…so you're having a bit of trouble tracking, but that's not abnormal for a concussion or for post-anesthesia. I'm going to recheck in several hours, though. Your scans were fine, however - no evidence of bleeding in the brain or additional damage." She pulls out a pen light and shines it in her eyes. Alara grimaces and squeezes her eyes shut and tries to turn her head, but Dr. Elgae gently grabs her face and holds it in place. "I know this is uncomfortable, but I need to check your pupils. Open your eyes and we'll be done, okay? It'll take five seconds. Good girl…aaaaaand done! They look great, both reactive to light, just as I expected. So that does it for my exam. Do any of you have any questions for me before I check on my other patients?"

"Um, you said she has a concussion so…is it safe for her to sleep?"

"It's actually a common misconception that people with concussions shouldn't sleep. On the contrary, extra sleep actually aids in the healing process. So she can sleep as long as she needs to."

"How soon can she be moved?" Ed asks. "I haven't gotten in contact with our ship yet but as soon as I do I'm going to request a shuttle sent ASAP. We appreciate all that you and your team have done for Alara but she really needs the technology that our ship offers."

"I understand completely. As I said before, our hospital would really benefit from more "modern" technology, if you will. As for moving her…well she's not on any life support, so she could be transported really anytime. It's more an issue of her comfort traveling. I'd recommend that your ship's doctor accompany the shuttle to the planet's surface. We have a landing pad over on the east lawn…as a matter of fact you can see it from the window here. Once your shuttle arrives we can wheel her to it and your doctor will take over from there."

"Sounds like a good plan. The only problem is getting in contact with them. They should have been back in range over a day ago..."


	8. Chapter 8

Alara's POV  
19:27

 _I lead the pursuit of the two Xelayans through the empty alleyway. I aim my weapon at one, ready to stun her, when the other stops dead in her tracks. It catches me off guard and I slam into her, knocking both of us to the ground._

 _I army-crawl over to my weapon but she's quicker and much larger than me. She steps on it, smashing it into pieces that scatter across the blacktop. She then brings her boot down hard on my hand and then on my back, pinning me to the ground and knocking the wind out of me with a low "Oof!"_

 _She reaches down with her hand to push my face into the pavement and I roll, causing her to lose her balance. I get in a few good punches before she reaches down and pulls a knife from her boot, slashing my jaw, just inches away from hitting an artery. I aim a kick at her hand and she drops the knife, shaking her fingers and grunting out an expletive. She dives for the knife and before she can push herself back up from the ground I jump on her back._

 _"Oh, you little shit!" She snarls and throws me off. I bang my head on the concrete as I land and am momentarily dazed. I get up unsteadily and we wrestle for the knife. That's when her friend decides to show up. Out of the corner of my eye I see her reach behind a dumpster and pick up a metal pipe. It's quite heavy, if the solid-sounding clanks it makes against the pavement are any indication. This catches me off guard and that's when the knife is plunged into my belly._

 _I'm in shock, stunned, dazed, and her friend uses that to her advantage and swings her pipe, striking my arm and then my knee with a loud crack just as the knife is pulled from my abdomen; warm blood soaks into my uniform._

 _I'm seeing stars. I would vomit if only I had the time. The pain in my belly has been completely eclipsed by the pain in my knee. I finally collapse, landing on my busted arm with a whimper because I don't have the strength to scream…_

 _The only thing that prevents these women from killing me is the sound of Ed and Kelly calling my name from a distance._

Ed's POV  
19:40

 _"Alara? Alara, can you hear me?"_

 _We have her on the floor of the shuttlepod, her head cradled sideways in Kelly's lap. Kelly's holding a tissue - one of the ones that she keeps in her pants and that always wound up going through the laundry when we lived together - against a long laceration on her jaw._

 _"Alara?" I repeat, patting her cheek._

 _"She's totally out of it. Ed, we need to get her back to the ship."_

 _I know that voice. That's Kelly's "I'm just barely restraining my panic" voice._

 _"I've tried five times. Nobody's answering." And…that was mine. We sure do work well as a team._

 _"Then send out a distress beacon."_

 _"I just did. Right now all we can do is wait. The nearest hospital is over twenty miles away."_

 _"Help me get her jacket off, then; we need to know what we're dealing with here."_

 _Alara wakes up screaming in pain as we try to pull her left arm out of its sleeve. Kelly looks like she's about to cry as she's forced to hold her wailing friend down so I can maneuver her arm the rest of the way out._

 _"Alara, Alara it's okay, shhhhhh. We almost got it. We really need to look at your arm."_

 _"Too bad we can't just rip the material like in the movies. I guess I just don't have the finger strength." Ugh. Leave it to me to crack a joke at a time like this. What a jackass I am._

 _I free her arm and almost vomit. There's no blood but the sight of someone's arm bruised and bent at an odd angle is enough to turn anyone's stomach. I put my fist to my mouth and breathe in slowly through my nose. The last thing Alara needs is me puking on her. "Okay…mmmph…that's definitely broken."_

 _Kelly squeezes both of Alara's hands. "Her fingers are cold."_

 _"Her shirt looks wet…wait, there's a hole in it."_

 _That can't be good._

 _Kelly lifts her shirt and mutters an expletive. And then several more. Oh my god, I don't want to look, but what sort of captain would I be if I chickened out?_

 _My fears are confirmed. Blood. All over her stomach, pooling in her belly button, originating from a deep-looking stab wound._

 _More blood oozes out with each labored breath she takes._

 _"Shit, Ed, this is bad. We can probably get the bleeding under control but if she gets an infection -"_

 _"I know, Kel, I know. Just…let me think."_

 _Alara moans but doesn't open her eyes._

 _"It's gonna be okay. We're gonna get you back up to the Orville and Claire will fix you up. Can you tell us where else you hurt?"_

 _"M'head." She mumbles._

 _"I know, you whacked it pretty hard. Can you open your eyes for me? Ed, hand me that flashlight."_

 _I fumble for the flashlight sitting on the console. Alara opens her eyes. Both are glassy, the left one looks a bit bloodshot. I hand Kelly the flashlight and then, impatient, send out another distress beacon._

 _"Well both of her pupils dilate when I shine the light in them, so I think that's a good sign. Right?"_

 _"My leg hurts…"_

 _Your leg hurts? Which one?"_

 _"Umm…right."_

 _"Can you straighten it out so we can roll your pants up? No? Okay. Ed, help me roll her pants leg up. The right one."_

 _Oh god. Here we go again. Whatever is under there I probably don't want to see. Nonetheless, I ease the material up her leg as gently as I can._

 _Holy shit. Her knee is swollen and bruised purple. The bruising has already begun to spread up into her thigh and down into her calf. I don't think I've ever seen such intense bruising._

 _"I think it's dislocated. I'm gonna try to pop it back." I grab her foot and try to straighten her leg. Alara screams bloody murder._

 _"Ed, stop!" Kelly screams at me. "You're making it worse! STOP!"_

 _Alara's screaming and covering her eyes with one hand. I stop._

 _"Her knee is_ broken _, Ed, not dislocated! Stop copying things you see on TV. She needs medical attention now!"_

 _"Oh give me a break, when else have I copied something from TV?"_

 _"I'm not talking about this right now. Alara needs a hospital. You said the nearest hospital is 20 miles away - so stop sending out distress beacons and we should have enough power to get us there."_

 _Damn, I hate when she's right._


	9. Chapter 9

Alara's POV  
14:33

"I snagged this from the shelf in the hallway." Kelly says as she tucks another blanket around me. "Is that any better?"

"Yeah, a-a bit."

"Good. Try not to worry, okay? The nurse should be here in a minute and she'll get this all sorted out." She places her hand on my forehead. "You feel nauseous at all?"

I nod.

The nurse arrives with the captain on her heels.

"How're we doin' in here? I hear you're not feeling so hot."

"Yeah, so a half hour ago she was fine. She was sitting up, chatting with us, eating jello. Then this fever came on suddenly and she won't stop shaking, not even with four blankets on, and she feels like a furnace."

"And my stomach hurts…really bad." I groan. "And I want to throw up." Just mentioning puking is enough to make my stomach churn, and I shut my mouth and breathe slowly through my nose before anything has a chance to come up.

"Alright, hun, we're gonna get your temp and go from there." She goes to stick a thermometer in my mouth but I shake my head, afraid to open it. "Sweetheart, I know you're nauseous, but there are two places this thermometer can go; I think you'll prefer this one."

I hear a soft "Ouch" from the captain across the room. I open my mouth immediately. The thermometer takes over a minute to beep. It's an agonizing minute. The tip of the thermometer leaves a horrible metallic taste in my mouth.

"103.9. Alright, you've got a fever. I'm going to let the doctor know and she'll probably switch your antibiotic. Nothing to worry about. Now, I'm just going to take a quick peek at your belly."

She pulls up my gown to expose an angry red wound. Just hours ago there was only a thin pink ring around the staples, seemingly just local tissue irritation from the trauma. Now a good portion of my belly is red and hot.

"Holy shit." The captain mutters from the foot of the bed. "Now _that's_ infected!"

"It is, but we're hardly at the holy shit stage yet." The nurse responds, glancing up at him. "Nothing we can't handle."

She prods the area with her fingers and I shriek. I can't help it.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She coos at me. "Alright, I'm going to notify your doctor and while we wait for her to come in I'm going to give you some medicine to bring your fever down. Oh and here," she adds, placing a plastic basin on the bedside table, "just in case."

She leaves the room and I look miserably at the basin.

"You need it?" Kelly asks, ready to grab it.

I shake my head quickly. I refuse to throw up in front of my commanding officers, even if one of them also happens to be my best friend.

"You sure?" She eyes me suspiciously, as if she doesn't believe me.

I nod.

"You know, you might feel a whole lot better if you just throw up."

I shake my head again, too quickly this time and my vision swims briefly.

"Kel, stop trying to make her throw up."

Kelly barely restrains herself from glaring at Ed, but relents. "Alright, well just let me know. Is that extra blanket helping at all?"

I nod slowly even though it's not entirely true. My chills have abated a bit, but only if I lie absolutely still. Kelly places her hand on my forehead again, then on my cheek.

"Yeah, you're burning up…hey, why are you crying? Alara, everything's gonna be okay."

I use the crook of my elbow to try to cover my eyes once I notice the captain walking over towards me.

"Are you crying because you're scared or because it hurts?" He asks me, crouching down at the side of the bed and patting my elbow.

Embarrassed, I shrug my shoulders and continue to hide my face. I'm acting like a baby, not the chief of security of a Union starship. Once this ordeal is all over I should probably request reassignment…

"Alara, I think you're going to feel a whole lot better after the nurse comes back in with that fever medicine. And then the doctor is going to come in and she'll probably switch your antibiotic and you'll feel good as new. I don't think you have anything to be scared of. It's okay to cry, though. Nobody is going to think differently of you if they see you cry. I cry, Ed cries."

"All the time. You know, Gordon cried when we played Gone with the Wind at movie night that one time. And he's seen it at least ten times. I think I saw Bortus crying during it, too, when Bonnie Blue died."

"See? Even Bortus cries. There's no rule against crying in the military."

A knock at the door startles me a bit but I don't budge from my position.

"Hi there, I have your fever medicine." She frowns. "What's wrong, sweetie? Do you feel worse?"

"She's just a bit upset right now." Kelly answers for me.

"Okay, well, she should take the medicine as soon as possible; I don't want her fever to rise any higher. Alara, do you think you can take these pills for me?"

"Could you maybe just leave them? I'll make sure she takes them."

"Alright, if you promise me you'll get them into her in the next ten minutes."

"I promise."

I hear a low rattle as she sets the medicine cup down on the table; the squeaking of her shoes indicates her departure.

"Ed, shoo."

"Shoo? Oh, uh, yeah…you know, I've actually been meaning to hit the John…"

"Good. Why don't you get a bite to eat or something as well?"

The captain walks out the door, muttering something about peeing and sandwiches, and when I'm sure he's gone I uncover my face.


	10. Chapter 10

Ed's POV  
15:00

I've done my business. I've gotten myself a sandwich (and eaten it, too). What do I do now? Kelly didn't exactly give me a time for when I could come back to the room. I got the impression that she wanted to give Alara enough time sans el capitan to get her tears out. They're probably doing "girl talk" in there, too, if I know them well enough. That reminds me - when we get back to the ship - I swallow the lump that forms in my throat at the prospect that there may no longer _be_ a ship - Gordon and I have some serious boy talk to catch up on.

Well, this is awkward. Instead of standing outside Alara's room like a buffoon I opt to pace the corridors. When I'm nearly flattened by a rampaging gurney for the second time in five minutes I decide to walk downstairs to the main lobby where the hallways are wider and the gurneys don't barrel towards you like long-haul air-freighters on the transcontinental highway. As I pass the gift shop I contemplate going back in and getting Alara another gift to cheer her up. Maybe a balloon? No! Nothing clownish. A nice card? "Dear Alara, sorry we took you on this mission and almost got you killed. P.S. At least you'll have some cool scars to show off! Love, Ed". No, scrap the card idea.

I go in anyway just to putz around.

What's that on the far wall? Is that what I think it is? Yes, it's candy! Oh yeah, I'll bet her nurses are just dying to have her puke chocolate all over them. I suppose I could buy it now and give it to her when she's all better…or I could just buy some for myself and eat it in the bathroom so neither of them see it. Stop. That's a slippery slope, Ed. I will not revert back to the 300-pound teenage Ed who ate Nutella by the spoonful in his bedroom and hid the empty jars in his closet like corpses.

I tear myself away from the wall of candy and browse the store. There's books - a small selection of kids' books, young adult books, romance novels. Our universal translator only works on spoken words, however, so getting a book would be pointless. I make my way over to the toy section where I picked out the monkey plusy. The monkey was the only one that didn't look like a freak show; this planet has some very interesting and unique wildlife, that's for sure. I dig around in the bin, looking for the freakiest of the freak shows. I'm gonna buy it for Kelly as a joke. I'll gauge her mood first, of course, and if I deem that she's not in a good one, I'll wait and give it to Gordon.

I select my freak show plush of choice and continue to browse the shop. I should probably get a souvenir for Claire. Why, you ask? I dunno. I just get the feeling that she'll be disappointed that she didn't get to treat Alara and that she got mutilated by medieval medicine instead. I spy a table in the middle of the store with a large assortment of drinking glasses and mugs. There's all sorts of shapes, sizes, and colors, but they all have one thing in common - they're all stamped with what I can only assume is the hospital's name and crest. The writing looks like a combination of Hebrew, Korean, and maybe a bit of Arabic.

It's then that I notice a paper sign taped to the table.

"Excuse me, miss." I get the attention of the store clerk. "Can you tell me what this sign says?"

"Oh, it just says that 100% of the proceeds from the sale of drinkware goes towards the hospital's charity program. It allows us to provide care for those who can't afford it."

Okay, so it's one for everybody, then! I dig around in my back pocket and fish out the paper money that the Union provided us with before embarking on this mission from hell.

"Here, I think this should about cover it." I say as I uncrumple a bunch of banknotes and stack them on the checkout counter.

"Sir, this is way too much, even for all of them. Each glass is only - "

"Nah, you're good. Keep the change. Look, to be honest I only want to take five of those home with me. Think of the rest of it as a donation."

"Thank you so much, sir! This really means a lot!" The checkout girl begins wrapping each glass in paper and stacks them together in a gift bag. "Here you are, sir."

"Thanks! I'll probably be back later for some of that candy, too."


	11. Chapter 11

Ed's POV  
15:30

I give them another half hour of alone time before I return to the room. I listen first, and when I hear the sounds of quiet conversation (see, I knew they would be girl-talking!) instead of tears I knock politely. Kelly's voice greets me:

"Door's open."

"Thanks. How we doin?"

"A bit better. Jeez, what's in the bag? A Cuisinart?"

"Just some souvenirs. We can't let all of our memories of this place be bad ones."

"Sure we can." Kelly looks down at her shoes. "Sorry, Ed, I'll always envy your ability to be optimistic about everything."

I sneak a peak at Alara's face. Looks like somebody cleaned the tear tracks off of it. She still doesn't look like a happy camper, though, and appears to have clammed up. So she'll talk to Kelly but not me. If it were anybody else I might put my hands on my hips and go "Hmmmph!" but this is Alara - she's just a kid and is obviously embarrassed about crying in front of me.

"You just missed the doctor. She said that the belly wound needs to be reopened and drained."

"Ooh, that sounds lovely. They gonna put her out for it or what?"

"No, they'll just give her a local. Apparently because the wound doesn't penetrate the abdominal cavity they don't need to take her back into the OR. I think they'll be back any minute, actually."

"Don't count on it. You know doctors - they say they'll be right back but really they're visiting their fifty other patients and you don't see them again for five hours. You know, I had appendicitis when I was ten, and, I kid you not, they admitted me at 2:30 PM on a Friday afternoon and I didn't go into the OR until 3:00 AM Saturday. The doctors spent a total of about an hour actually seeing me and running tests. You should've seen my parents - my dad slumped over in the chair and my mom asleep on the floor. I kept waking my dad up, begging for food. I recall him saying at around 1 AM 'Eddie, I'm gonna be pissed if it turns out you're fine.'"

"Aww, poor Eddie. I'm sure he was just joking, though. Your dad's a pretty nice guy."

"Well…I kinda left out what prompted him to say that. So hours before they gave me this contrast stuff to drink so they could do a scan and see my guts better. It was delicious, by the way - tasted just like fruit punch and I was freaking starving by that point. Anyway, the after-effect of it is that it gives you the trots. So my poor dad was having to get up from his chair every ten minutes to take me down the hall to the crapper because I was too shy to go by myself. Well, I wound up falling asleep and crapping myself in the bed."

"Oh, Ed! I don't need to hear this!"

"Anyway, my dad didn't want to bother my nurse or wake up my mom, so he cleaned me - and the bed - up by himself. Let's just say it was a disaster zone. Like a tsunami of -"

"Okay, okay, Ed, I get the idea! Please, no more, or I'll kick you out again!"

"Sorry. Well, anyway, now that I'm an adult I can understand why my dad was a bit peeved by that point."

"Precisely. Reason #1,701 why not to have children."

"Yeah, they're pretty gross. But for the record, I think you'd have made a good mother."

Oops. I didn't quite mean to say that. I quickly look away so I'll never know what her immediate reaction is.


	12. Chapter 12

Ed's POV  
18:08

"Her fever's back. Last check it was over 104." Kelly says, biting her thumbnail. I place my hand on her knee and give it a light squeeze.

"Relax, Kel. Don't let yourself get worked up. The antibiotics probably just haven't started working yet. And stop biting your nails."

"They've drained her wound. They've changed her antibiotics twice now. What if they don't find one that works?"

"They will." I stand up and stretch, trying to appear nonchalant to hide my own anxiety. I'm the captain, after all. I can't be letting my first officer sense how nerve-wracking this whole situation is for me. "At least she's asleep now."

"She's sedated, Ed. She was fighting them too much while they worked on her wound. You'd know that if you hadn't chickened out."

"What are you talking about?" I ask, feigning innocence.

"When she was screaming in pain. You couldn't handle it. You chickened out and said you had to go to the bathroom so you could leave the room."

"I did have to go to the bathroom."

"You'd just gone to the bathroom twenty minutes before the doctor came in."

"What are you, now, the potty police? How do you know I didn't have to go number two?"

"Because I was married to you, Ed! I know for a fact that you only go number two after breakfast and right before bed."

"Well _that's_ a dirty lie! I'll have you know that I can and do poop at all hours of the day! Anyway, how is it that somehow my colon is once again the subject of discussion?"

" _You_ brought up that gross story earlier, not me."

God, what are we doing? Never in a million years did I think I'd be stranded at an alien hospital, standing at the bedside of my seriously ill youngest officer, arguing with my ex-wife-turned-first officer about my toilet habits. I look Kelly in the eyes. I can't fight anymore. I simply don't have the energy. I sigh, deep and shuddering.

"I'm sorry, Kel." I look at the floor and shuffle from left to right. "You're right. I wimped out. I just…couldn't deal with it. I'm sorry that, once again, I left you holding the bag." I plop down on the couch and hide my face in my hands.

A minute passes and then Kelly lowers herself down on the other end of the couch. She sighs but says nothing. We sit here for a few minutes, in silence, listening to the occasional beep of a monitor and Alara's soft breathing. Kelly's the first one to talk, quietly and calmly.

"They made me hold the mask over her face. They couldn't keep her arm still enough to get a needle into the IV port, so they put a gas mask over her face and told me to hold it in place. Ed, I never want to have to do that again. I never want to see that look of terror in her eyes again. And I also don't want to keep arguing with you. So I'm going to take a walk, get some dinner, and I think you should take a nap. When the hell's the last time you slept?"

"Uh…my memory's a bit foggy. Not counting that little nap I took this morning…uh…two days ago?"

"Yeah, go to sleep. We could both benefit from clear heads."

"Yes, ma'am." I give her a mock salute.


	13. Chapter 13

Kelly's POV  
18:32

I take the elevator up, I take the elevator down, I accidentally wind up in the morgue (classic, right?), I take the elevator back up, I navigate a maze of corridors, I set off the alarm when I use the emergency stairs to go back down two floors…and then I finally locate the cafeteria. I'm about ready to pull my hair out at this point. If this hospital had some English signage it would make things a _hell of a lot_ easier.

Okay, calm down, girl. Ed doesn't need to be dividing his time between the surgical unit and the psych ward, although if I ever am committed it'll most likely be he who puts me there.

At least the food smells good. It doesn't smell like your classic Earth hospital food. I remember when I was 9, I spent nearly every afternoon of my summer visiting my grandma at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston after she suffered a stroke. My most enduring memory of that place is the smell - the unmistakable sick geriatric odor that permeates the hallways but nobody wants to speak of, combined with the seemingly ever-present smell of mashed potatoes and gravy.

The latter was not an unpleasant smell in and of itself, but I grew to associate it with the stench of sour butts and death warmed over.

Anyway, this place smells much better. Maybe this planet doesn't grow potatoes. Maybe they take their senior citizens outside and power wash them once in a while. Either way, it's a welcome difference.

I drag my tired body inside and pick up a dark green tray just inside the entrance. Wow. This cafeteria is freaking huge. There are multiple stations, some that are buffet style, some where you can get stuff cooked to order. There's an entire station devoted just to some sort of make-your-own stir fry-style dish. I can't believe Ed came here the first morning and all he brought back was a stupid pastry.

I'm a little apprehensive, though - hardly any of the foods look familiar. What was my New Year's resolution? Try new things? Or was it…stop getting drunk and yelling at the television? I can't remember which. Regardless, I'm not trying to look like the typical "ignorant human" who refuses to try new stuff. Determined to give my species a good name, I puff out my chest and stride over to one of the buffet stations, load up my plate, and approach the cashier.

The cashier is a nice old lady wearing latex gloves and a hairnet. She smiles at me and I return the gesture, but I guess my smile doesn't reach my ears.

"Long day, dear? You look tired."

"You could say that."

She reaches under her desk and pulls out a cookie wrapped in plastic. She places it on my tray and pats my hand.

"Well, have a cookie, on me."

How adorable is this little old lady? I half expect her to reach out and pinch my cheek.

"Thank you so much! You're very kind!"

"You just look like you could use a treat. Enjoy your meal, dear."

I pocket the cookie. I'll give it to Alara once she's feeling up to eating. Can't break my diet.

I sit down at a small table in the corner of the busy dining room and dig into my meal.


	14. Chapter 14

Alara's POV  
03:56

"Oh shit!"

I'm jolted awake by the exclamation from across the room. I open my tired eyes and through the darkness I see the captain leap off the couch and fumble around for his communicator.

"Kel, where is it? I can't find it!"

"Your pants, Ed, it's in your pants!"

" _Captain Mercer, do you read? This is Lieutenant Commander Bortus._ "

"Yes, yes, I read, Bortus! Can you hear me?" He's practically shouting at the communicator, desperation getting the best of him.

" _We hear you loud and clear, Sir._ "

"Oh thank god! Look, before we exchange any more pleasantries I just want to make sure you guys have a lock on our coordinates. Just in case we lose contact again."

" _You think we're lazy up here, or something? We've already determined your location. Didn't want to keep you guys waiting._ "

"Gordon, I have never been as happy to hear your voice as I am right now."

 _"Likewise. I think I have a few new grey hairs and Bortus nearly drank himself to death on - get this - Xelayan tequila, because he knew he would have to be the one to report to Halsey."_

 _"That is incorrect."_

 _"It's partly correct! You did drink the tequila! Aww, don't be embarrassed!"_

" _Gordon, be quiet for a minute, please._ " There's the matronly voice I've been waiting to hear. " _Captain, I need to know immediately why you three are in a hospital so I can coordinate care and determine if my presence is needed on the shuttlecraft._ "

"Alara's been injured, Claire, pretty bad. She's got multiple broken - "

 _"Captain, I'm gonna stop you right there. Confidentiality, remember? I'm going to have them patch the signal through to sick bay and speak to you from there, okay?"_

"Right. Sorry, I, uh, always forget about that sort of stuff." He scratches his head and plops back down onto the couch, exhaustion taking over.

 _"Hey Captain, you still there?"_

"Hey, John! It's good to hear your voice!"

 _"Yeah, so we're just gonna keep talking to you until Claire gets to sick bay. Better than being on hold, right?"_

"You got that right!"

 _"So what exactly happened down there? Alara get beat up or something?"_

"Something like that. Look, Claire's right, the Union has patient confidentiality rules that we need to follow."

 _"Alright, that's cool. Is Kelly good?"_

"I'm here, John! I'm fine. Tired, but fine."

"And I'm doing well, too, John. Thanks for asking, by the way."

 _"Sorry, sir, I just assumed you were all good since I'm talking to you. Anyway, I think Claire's ready to talk to you. Patching you through now."_

I guess I doze off while the captain is rattling off my laundry list of injuries to Claire, because I'm suddenly awakened again by a gentle "Alara" and a touch to my forehead.

"It's Claire. Do you want to talk to her?" Kelly holds the communicator in front of my mouth. I clear my throat as best I can but doing so hurts my belly so my voice is thick and raspy.

"H-hi."

 _"Hi sweetie, how are you feeling?"_

"Ok. I wanna go home."

 _"We're getting the shuttle prepped to come down and get you, but we're still about two hours away. Do you think you can hang tight until then?"_

"Uh-huh."

 _"Okay, well I'll see you then."_

Kelly takes the communicator back.

"She's still a bit out of it."

 _"I can tell. She sounds awful."_

"They had a tube down her throat."

 _"Lord almighty. Those tubes are something that should be left in the history books. Poor thing…is she scared?"_

"More disoriented than anything else. Oh, did Ed tell you about her fever?"

 _"He mentioned it, yes. What's the latest reading?"_

"Last check it was over 104 but they gave her a stronger fever reducer so for the time being it's down."

 _"Okay, thanks for giving me the run-down. I'm gonna let you go for now. Need to finish packing my med kit. We should be leaving in about a half hour, give or take."_

"We'll be waiting."

"Oh Claire, wait! You still there?"

 _"Still here, everything okay?"_

"Can you _please_ contact Alara's parents? We promised her you would!"

" _Of course, sir. Claire out."_


	15. Chapter 15

Claire's POV  
07:11

I might vomit. This has to be the second-worst shuttle ride I've ever taken.

"If I'd known we were gonna to be flying into a storm I would have suggested we leave later." John glances over at me, concern on his face. "You gonna be okay? You look like you're about to hurl."

I close my eyes and breathe in deeply through my nose. Once. Twice. A third time. Impending puke is suppressed. For now.

"You know, sometimes it's best if you just let it out. When it wants to come up that badly it's not natural to keep it down. Just try to get it all into the bag."

I hold up my index finger and swallow hard. "Not…another word, Lamarr, or I will have you written up for trying to induce…vomiting in a superior officer. That is a _very_ serious offense!"

"Sorry, sir, it won't happen again."

We land as close to the hospital entrance as we can. I open the hatch and stumble out onto the grass, landing on my hands and knees, and contemplate kissing the ground. No, that wouldn't look professional. John is immediately behind me, pulling me to my feet and handing me my medical kit.

"I know you're having a moment with the ground and all, but we should get inside before we get soaked."

We enter the main lobby and the kind lady at reception gives us Alara's room number. 420. John snickers. Honestly, sometimes I really don't understand these kids.

We get lost twice and somehow wind up at the cafeteria both times. A friendly orderly finally escorts us to the correct floor and wing.

I knock on the door to room 420 and Kelly's voice greets us.

"Come in."

She is perched on the edge of Alara's bed, the concern on her face melting as soon as we walk in.

"You don't know how glad we are to see you." She rises and pulls me in for a hug.

"Likewise. We feared the worst." I make my way over to Alara, who's curled up and shivering under at least three blankets. "How is she?"

"Her fever's back, as I'm sure you can tell. The medication's really starting to irritate her stomach."

"Probably on a high dosage. When did she last eat?"

"Um…yesterday, I think. It was yesterday, right Ed?"

"Yeah, she had some jello but refused anything else."

"So they've been giving her round-the-clock fever medicine on an empty stomach? The medicine's in pill form, right?"

"Uh, yeah…that's bad, isn't it?"

"Well since she's only been on the pills for a day or so they probably haven't had the chance to destroy her stomach lining. I'm putting her on a course of omeprazole the second we get her home, though."

"I think my dad takes that…" Ed wonders aloud.

I sit on the edge of the bed, where Kelly had been perched just a minute prior.

"Alara? Alara, wake up." I place my hand on her forehead. It's pretty damned hot. Her eyes open and I give her a big smile. "Hi, how do you feel, sweetheart?"

"Mmm…I'm cold. Everything hurts. I want to go home."

"We're gonna get you home as soon as we can, okay? We need to wait for the storm to pass. In the meantime I'm gonna need to pull these blankets down so I can give you an injection. This'll bring your fever down without upsetting your tummy any more. It works fast, too."

She rolls onto her back and I inject her upper arm and wait until she's comfortable before pulling her blankets further down so I can take a look at her stomach. I move to pull her gown up then remember we have an audience. I turn to the guys.

"Hey, why don't you two go to the cafeteria or something?"

"Is it open yet? Cuz I could go for a sandwich right about now…"

"John, it doesn't matter, she just wants us out."

"Ohhhh, I see. Girls only club, huh? You got it, doc."

"Hey, wait for me, I need to get my shoes on…"

Once they're gone I expose Alara's belly only to encounter a large white bandage held in place by copious amounts of medical tape. I use my fingernail to get under a small corner of the tape. Ooh, this stuff is on there. The most humane thing to do would be the classic 1-2-3 - RIP! I consider my options - it's either the agonizingly slow peeling process or the ambush method that might make her hate me for a few minutes. My mind is made up.

 _RIPPPPPPPP_!

Alara screams in pain. Kelly screams in surprise. I gasp in horror at the line of staples running across her bruised belly. How barbaric! I try to control my emotions, try to remind myself that Alara is alive because of the care she received at this hospital. It's just hard to imagine, in this day and age, using heavy duty office supplies to close such delicate flesh! In addition to the staples, it would appear that someone drew on her stomach with marker to indicate the borders of infection.

"Is that permanent?" Kelly licks her finger and rubs at the black line. "Yeah, it's permanent."

I roll my eyes. Imbeciles. What am I gonna find next, plates and screws?

I'd like to get the staples out as soon as possible - they probably hurt like a bitch - but decide to wait until we're back on the ship and I have all of my supplies at my disposal. I make a mental note to snag a pair of staple removers.

I replace the bandage and apologize to Alara for hastily ripping it off.

"I'll be back. I'm going to the nurses station to get a copy of her medical record. I need to know everything that they treated her for, what procedures they performed, and what medications she's received and is currently receiving; I intend to correct every mistake they may have made. I'm gonna grab a pair of staple removers, too. You gotta use primitive tools to remove primitive hardware."


	16. Chapter 16

Kelly's POV  
09:32

A white bolt of lightning pierces the sky off in the distance. I count the seconds. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. A low rumble follows. I breathe a sigh of relief - the storm is moving off.

The nurse finishes unhooking Alara from the IV drips and monitors.

"Good to go?" Ed asks.

"Good to go."

"Alright, here we go." Ed bends over and lifts Alara off of the bed.

"Gently, gently." Claire cautions, instinctively holding out her hands as if to catch the patient in case Ed drops her.

"I know, I know, I'm being gentle." He sounds slightly exasperated.

He turns around and lays her down on the gurney that's waiting beside the bed and she curls up and shivers. Claire and I were able to get a pair of kindly-donated scrub pants on her earlier to ensure that John and Ed don't get a glimpse of her undies, but the thin material is apparently no match for her again-rising temperature.

I snag a blanket from her bed and tuck it around her. The Union is going to be donating some state-of-the-art medical equipment to this hospital, so they probably won't miss one blanket. I turn back to the window.

"Guys, I think the storm's almost out of here. We should get moving before the next one comes through."

"I think we're all set. Let's see - do we have everything we need? Communicators? Check. Snacks for the ride home? Check. Alara's paperwork? Check. Alara's clothes which are probably ruined? Check. Staple remover? Check. Souvenirs? Check. Ooookay, I think we're good. Let's roll on out of here."

"Wait, what about the money?" John asks.

"What money?"

"You know, the money that you leave on the nightstand for the nurses? Like, a tip, or something like that?"

"John, this is a hospital, not a hotel."

"Oh, my bad."

An orderly unlocks the wheels on the old-fashioned metal-railed gurney and maneuvers it out the door. The staff all bid farewell to us as we begin the slow journey down the hallway to the bank of elevators.

Once outside I'm glad to see that John had the foresight to park the shuttle as close to the building as possible, just several feet of grass between it and the concrete entryway.

John hurries ahead of us and opens the hatch. Claire puts a hand on Ed's shoulder as she slips past him.

"Hang back here, I want to get the seat ready." She disappears inside.

The sky, which had lightened up for a bit once the storm passed, is growing darker again. The breeze picks up. Alara curls up as tightly as she can and grips the blanket to her. I reach down and feel her forehead and she jerks away slightly, my cool palm a shock to her overheated skin.

What's that old saying? Starve a cold, feed a fever? Or is it the other way around? Whatever, I just want her to be comfortable. I remove my jacket and lay it on top of the blanket, tucking the collar under her chin.

"That better?"

She nods. "Thanks."

"You want Ed's, too? I'm sure I can convince him to relinquish it."

She shakes her head.

Claire pops out of the shuttlecraft. "We're all set. Let's get inside and out of here before the next storm rolls through."


	17. Chapter 17

Claire's POV  
11:22

The bumpy shuttlecraft ride back to the ship didn't help Alara at all. Her fever went up another degree and she spent half the time trying not to vomit. I finally resorted to a sedative which made her sleepy but upset, so she cried quietly the rest of the way home while I rubbed her back. Now I have a kink in my wrist.

After what seems like an eternity we arrive in sickbay, my safe haven.

"Okay, get her onto that bed. It's gonna be okay, Alara. I know you're feeling pretty lousy right now but we're going to get all of your wounds healed properly and get that infection under control. Can I get a temp, please?"

Nurse Park shoves a thermometer into her ear and it beeps in two seconds. "Temp 104.4."

"I gave her the shot not two hours ago and it's already back up. We can't let it rise any higher than that. Her heartrate's through the roof. Alright, I'm gonna need a hypo with 2 ml of Pyrexidine. Get those blankets off her but leave the sheet - it won't retain too much body heat."

Park hands me the hypo and I inject it into Alara's neck.

"This should start to work its magic in about ten minutes, though it can take up to two hours for full effect. We can expect a three degree drop by then. In the meantime I'm going to sedate her so I can reopen that belly wound and clean it out. I'm also gonna remove all the hardware those doctors screwed into her bones. Captain, get that worried look off your face. I know she's been through the wringer but she's going to be fine." I hand Kelly her jacket.

"I know, it's just…god, I need a drink." Ed runs a hand through his hair.

"Yes, please! Both of you, stop hovering and take care of yourselves! Get a drink, get a meal, get some sleep! I'll let you know when you're allowed to come back. Now shoo!"

The captain sighs, not happy to be kicked out but not daring to question me in my sickbay. "Alright. Kel, you wanna grab a meal?"

"Shouldn't we contact Alara's parents first? I promised her we would."

"Taken care of. They should be here in about four hours."

"Keep them out of here until she's out of surgery." I shout across the room at them. "I'm not having them see their daughter like this, or they'll bundle her up and take her home and we'll never see her again."

"Okay, but what should we do with them in the meantime? I mean, if they arrive before Alara's out of surgery?"

"You're the captain, I'm sure you can figure out what to do." I see the pouty look on his face and realize that I'm never going to get him out of here if I don't give him some suggestions. "Look, you can either tell them the truth - that their daughter is in surgery - as long as you don't let them come in, or you can make something up. Now go away."


	18. Chapter 18

Kelly's POV  
12:01

I'm ravenous but the mess hall food just isn't appealing today. Probably the stress talking. I opt for a light meal - a bagel with peanut butter on one half and cream cheese on the other. Ed deals with stress differently than I do, so he's currently massacring a steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, peas, cornbread, a beer, and two slices of chocolate peanut butter pie. I eye my bagel indifferently.

I have a lot of things I need to say but don't have the energy to - I barely have the energy to hold myself upright in my seat - so we remain silent until it gets uncomfortable, at which point I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

"So uh, I guess you'll be having a night movement, huh?"

Ed stops chewing and stares at me before a huge smile cracks his face and he begins to laugh. Not just any laugh, but a loud guffawing laugh that turns his face red and nearly shakes the table.

"You know me too well!"

I join in with him and laugh until my belly hurts. Ed is practically hysterical now, slapping the table with his palm, making our silverware jump and sloshing my full glass of water. The mess hall is crowded for lunch and I sense multiple pairs of eyes on us, but at the moment I don't give a damn. We need this.

However, I'm not prepared for the onslaught of nostalgia that I get once we've calmed down. This is how we used to be. We had so much fun together and, despite what we may say when we bicker, we really _were_ right for each other.


	19. Chapter 19

Kelly's POV  
15:03

Alara's parents are two of the most soft-spoken people I've ever met, and so so polite. They enter sickbay as quietly as mice and introduce themselves to Claire.

"Aww, there she is." I hear mom whisper as they make their way over to the bed.

As if mom wasn't quiet enough, dad whispers back "Shh, she's asleep, dear."

I stand up to greet them, extending my hand. Ed does the same.

"Hi, it's so nice to meet you, I'm Kelly Greyson, second in command."

Mom and dad take turns shaking my hand - mom's got one of those dead fish handshakes but I won't judge her - and whispering how nice it is to meet me, how they can tell their daughter looks up to me from the things she's told them, etc. They may have some hangups about their daughter's career choice, but they clearly love her enough to not voice any of those concerns right now.

Mom crouches down so her face is level with her daughter's. She kisses her on the cheek and the tip of the nose. "Hello, my sweet baby girl. Mommy's here."

Alara stirs but doesn't open her eyes. "Mmm…mom?"

"Yes, sweetheart, it's mommy, and daddy, too."

"Hi sweetie, daddy's here." He rests his large palm on her forehead. "She's warm."

"Mo-om…" Alara's near tears as she struggles to hold her arms out to her mother, soliciting a hug.

Mom notices the thin plastic green cast with blinking lights on her daughter's left arm and hesitates, deciding to stroke her hair and give her another kiss instead.

"It's alright to hug her." Claire reassures her. "Just try to avoid jostling that arm or pulling the wires. The cast is actually fusing her bones back together as we speak. It usually takes about 24 hours; she has 21 left."

Mom continues to hesitate and Claire gives her a verbal nudge.

"Please, Mrs. Kitan, give your daughter a hug. You're not going to damage her, I promise. Trust me, my older son once had casts on all four limbs _and_ a neck brace and I still gave him a hug when he asked for one. You just need to be careful. Now go on."

Mom happily obliges and Alara clutches her for a solid minute.

"Ooh, you're right, dear - she is warm." Mom's voice is muffled as she speaks into her daughter's hair.

"She has a residual fever, but it's mild. I was able to wean her off of the heavy duty fever reducers without her temperature spiking back up to 104, so things are looking up."

"Dr. Finn, if you don't mind we'd like to see her injuries." Dad requests in a soft voice. He doesn't seem bothered by the fact that Alara doesn't reach for him once mom lets go; I think most dads understand that when their child is hurting they typically want to be held by the person who nursed them.

"Well her soft-tissue injuries have been healed but I can show you where they were." Claire pulls the blanket down to expose Alara's belly. "She received a stab wound right here. It was originally stapled as a means of closure. Barbaric, I know. It became severely infected to the extent that I was forced to irradiate it to prevent further spread to the muscle. Our dermal regeneration unit took care of the healing and now she only has a faint pink scar that should fade in a few days."

Mom runs the tips of her fingers gently along the scar. "Oh my…you healed this beautifully."

"She had a laceration to her jaw that was initially closed with sutures but I removed them and it's healed up beautifully. Her left kidney was bruised but it's relatively minor. The repair process for that is actually considered invasive and is generally more trouble than it's worth…her kidney should heal itself in a week as long as she rests."

Mom rubs her belly soothingly. "Oh my poor baby…is she in any pain?"

"She's likely in a bit of residual pain from the extent of her injuries. The bone repair can also be a…not a painful process, per se, but it's irritating. The best comparison I have is restless leg syndrome - like a tightening, creepy-crawly feeling. Very uncomfortable. She has a healing cast on her right knee as well. Her kneecap was shattered and was put back together with metal hardware. I removed the hardware, just as I did for her arm, and the cast is fusing the fragments of bone back together. Um…there is a chance that the cast won't fuse the fragments back together properly due to the sheer number of splintered bone pieces. If that turns out to be the case then I'll generate her a new kneecap using the osteoblasts from the original."

"I'm assuming that would mean a longer stay in sickbay?" Dad asks.

"Yes, a few days, so we're keeping our fingers crossed that the cast works its magic."

"And when will we know whether or not it has?"

"In roughly 36 hours. Protocol for lower extremity cast healing has the patient not bear weight on the leg for 12 hours after the healing has completed. Then I'll have her walk, and if she feels pain or has trouble bending or extending the leg then we'll know it's improperly healed."

"Let's say the cast indeed works…how long until she can leave sickbay?"

"I'd say about 48 hours. She should be able to return to her quarters but she'll still need to rest for at least a week so her kidney can heal."

Mom gives dad a rather amused look. "If we know our daughter she's not going to be happy being cooped up for a week."

"Yes, it's unfortunate, but with the bruised kidney and the concussion - ooh did I tell you about the concussion? - it's important that she follows my instructions. That means no running, no hiking the Appalachian Trail in the E-Sim, and most definitely no boxing. After one week she can return to light duty."

"Ildis, I think we should stay the whole week."

"I'm not really sure that's necessary, dear."

"I'd just like for us to be around at least until she's cleared for light duty. What if she hurts herself?"

"Dear, she's not a child anymore. She's capable of following Dr. Finn's orders…I think. And I don't think Captain Mercer or Commander Greyson would let her do anything that would jeopardize her safety."

Yeah, unless you count the whole incident that put her in this bed in the first place…

Mom looks like she's about to get upset, so I quickly intervene. "Yes, Alara is in great hands here, but you're always welcome to stay longer if that's what you both decide is best."

"Thank you, Commander Greyson. Oh…before I forget, I actually have some things here for Alara and for the three of you."

She's carrying a tote bag which she reaches into and brings out a well-loved stuffed animal. Looks like a duck of some sorts. "This can stay with her here in sick bay…if that's alright, Dr. Finn?"

"Absolutely. Sentimental items and familiar surroundings have been proven to shorten healing times."

Mom lifts the top of the blanket and tucks the duck in next to her so its head rests on the pillow. Ooh boy, if Alara's lucid the next time she wakes up, I have a feeling she's going to be pretty embarrassed about mom tucking her childhood ducky into bed with her.

"Let me see, what else did I bring? Aha, this is for you, Commander Greyson." She pulls a large beautifully-decorated metal tin out of the bag. "Xelayan chocolate, a selection of the finest."

"Oh my gosh, you really didn't have to do that, but thank you so much! This is so thoughtful of you." I open the tin and am blown away by what I see. One hundred individually-wrapped little cubes, two of each flavor. Oh…my…god. Chocolate that's not from a synthesizer. Do I stuff them all in my face tonight or do I save them for when I'm PMSing really hard? I have to physically restrain myself from popping one in my mouth right now. "You know, to be honest, I didn't even know that you guys had chocolate on Xelaya."

"We actually cultivate the three edibles that you humans can't seem to live without - chocolate, coffee, and sugar. And yes, we're equally addicted to them. Anyway, we really appreciate you being a friend to our daughter. She's always had a bit of trouble…fitting in."

Dad takes the tote bag from mom and sets it down on the bed, rummaging through it until he pulls out a large black book. "For you, Dr. Finn."

"Oh - oh my! I wasn't expecting this! Thank you so much!" She fingers the silver lettering on the cover. "Oh my god, it's in English!"

"This is essentially what you would call the 'Medical Bible' of Xelaya. Updated every year for the past one thousand. Despite being from a high gravity world, we share 99% of our biology with humans. Research suggests that we may even share a common ancestor."

"Mr. Kitan, this is such a treasure. I'm going to start reading it tonight."

"We appreciate everything you've done for our daughter. Having met you, I can say I'll be sleeping better at night knowing Alara has such a wonderful, skillful doctor looking after her. Oh and please, call me Ildis."

I crack a tiny smile at the bashful look on Claire's face.

"And, for you, Captain Mercer, a bottle of our finest Kruzzti. Similar in taste to your brandy but extremely potent. This bottle has been aged over 150 years. We only request that you don't let Alara have any. You'll notice that there's a warning label on the bottle - people under 28 years shouldn't drink Kruzzti as it gives them intense hallucinations."

"Ah, but that's the fun part, right?"

Ouch. For the lame joke and the fact that Ed attempted to elbow me playfully on the arm but got my tit instead.

"I'm just kidding! Don't worry, I won't let her near it for another…four years and one week."

"Oh, and please, don't consume more than five milliliters in twelve hours. Overconsumption can also lead to hallucinations."

"Duly noted." He winks at me, then puts on his captain face. "So, Mr. and Mrs. Kitan, since Alara's not exactly, uh, coherent yet perhaps you'd like to get settled? I can take you to the guest quarters."

"Oh, we hate to be a bother. We're only going to be here for two or three days - we were planning on sleeping in Alara's quarters. She told us that it has a convertible couch."

"It's no bother at all. Trust me, you do not want to sleep on one of those pull-out couches for more than one night."

"No no, please, we'd be more than happy sleeping in our daughter's room. I think she'd probably like having us there once she gets out of sickbay."

Ed is fighting a losing battle against Alara's mom, with her soft voice and sweet smile. He resigns. "Alright, well how about I show you to her quarters, then?"

"My husband will go with you. Here, Ildis, can you take my bag? I just want to stay with her for a little while longer."


	20. Chapter 20

Alara's POV

 _Where did mom go? She was here a minute ago but all of a sudden I'm back in that hospital, being wheeled down an endless corridor with black-painted walls and black tiles on the floor._

 _I try to turn my head to see who's pushing the gurney I'm lying on, but I can't move my neck. I'm not in restraints and my neck doesn't hurt, I just can't move it. Okay, not gonna panic._

 _The gurney suddenly stops in front of a door that Captain Mercer steps out of, wearing surgical scrubs._

 _"Captain, are you a doctor now?" I ask him stupidly._

 _"No, Alara, I'm not, but they're a bit short-handed around here and need my help for your brain surgery."_

 _Brain surgery?_

 _"The doctors didn't mention anything about brain surgery, captain. I think you have the wrong person."_

 _He looks at the chart hanging on the gurney and then at my bracelet._

 _"Crap, you're right! Orderly, this is the wrong patient. Leave her in the hall and bring me Gordon Malloy, please. And get him here quickly; if we don't fix his stupid by 12 we never will."_

 _Gordon? Gordon's not here! Why are they fixing his stupid? He's not that stupid!_

 _I lie there, waiting, anxious, for two minutes before Gordon is wheeled down the hall towards me._

 _"Hey Alara." He gives me a small wave._

 _"Gordon, what's going on?"_

 _"I'm getting my stupid fixed, didn't you hear?"_

 _Suddenly Ed's voice booms from inside the operating room. "WHERE'S DOCTOR GREYSON?"_

 _"Right here, Ed!" Kelly pops out from under the blankets covering Gordon. "I was just checking his vitals."_

 _"Kel, what are you doing in his bed?"_

 _"Um…checking his vitals. I just told you."_

 _"For the last time, you cannot keep getting into bed with patients to check their vitals. And now we're going to have to sterilize you again."_

 _Okay, I'm definitely dreaming. Now if I could just figure out how to wake up…_

 _I'm startled as the intercom crackles to life. "Testing, testing…" That's my dad's voice, filtering through the hallway. "Testing. Our research indicates that the hillbillies of the galaxy have no business performing brain surgery on their crew members. Also, lunch today is cancelled. Sorry."_

 _Feeling brave I climb off of the gurney and, in my bare feet, pad into the operating room. However, when I step inside it's not an operating room at all. It's a morgue, and my crew mates are nowhere in sight._

 _"Alara…" Who said that?_

 _"Alara…" It's coming from one of the freezer drawers. Wake up. Wake up_ now _, dammit._

 _"Alara…"_

I sit bolt upright - screw the pain - gasping for air. My mom's next to me in an instant, wrapping her arms around me and I clutch at her, never wanting to let go.


	21. Chapter 21

Ed's POV  
16:30

I took Mr. Kitan to the mess hall after he got settled into Alara's quarters. I figured he was probably hungry after his trip but mostly I wanted to give Mrs. Kitan some time alone with her daughter. Don't get me wrong - I'm sure Alara has a great relationship with her dad, but mom seemed to emotionally _need_ to sit with her for a bit. So we had an early dinner, I introduced him to cheeseburgers and rocky road ice cream, and he in turn synthesized a Xelayan dessert that I must remember to ask him the name of because it's totally kicks ice cream's ass.

As we're meandering down the hall towards sick bay Mr. Kitan puts a hand on my shoulder to stop me.

"Captain…Dr. Finn mentioned something called an 'E-Sim' while we were in sick bay. Can you explain what that is? Is it like a game of some sorts?"

"One could certainly call it a game, yeah, but I think you should experience it for yourself. I'm not really good at explaining things. Plus, I think you'll be blown away...that is, figuratively, not literally. It's actually right down here at the end of the hall. We can check it out and be back in sick bay in five minutes."

"That would be fantastic."

We enter the large gridded room and Mr. Kitan's immediate reaction seems to be one of confusion, as if he's thinking "That's it?"

"Computer, play saved progra-" No, not appropriate to show a subordinate's father. "Um…begin new program. Let's see, where would be a good place to take you? Oh, I know! Computer, begin new program - Angels Landing summit, Zion National Park, Utah, current date."

I place a hand on Mr. Kitan's forearm to steady him as the E-Sim comes to life and we're suddenly standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking a canyon nearly 6,000 feet below us.

The look on his face is now one of sheer amazement. For about a minute he just scans the landscape, mouth agape, turning around a few times to take it all in.

"Oh my…this…is…incredible. Captain, we - we have simulators similar to this on Xelaya b-but this is a whole new level. This image is…seamless and I," he kneels down to pluck a few weeds growing out of cracks in the rock, "I can interact with it. The possibilities are endless."

I grin. He's like a kid in a candy store. "You wanna climb down?"

"Oh, I'm afraid my climbing days are over, Captain. As much as I'd love to stay and experience more of what this simulator has to offer, we should really return to sick bay; I'm sure my wife is wondering where we are."

"Good call. Computer, end program." The beautiful view disappears from around us and the black and white grid returns. "I like to call this our screensaver." He's not getting it. "Sorry, just a little Earth joke."

As we're heading for the door Mr. Kitan stops. "Captain, before we leave, I would be interested in viewing my daughter's program, the one that Dr. Finn mentioned - some sort of trail? If it's not too much trouble, of course."

"No, not at all. Computer, load saved program: Appalachian Trail." In an instant we're standing among pine trees, in front of a large brown sign that reads WELCOME TO BAXTER STATE PARK. "She's been hiking this thing during her free time. She's been at it for months now. She started down in Georgia and is now in Maine, which means she's close to completing the 2,200 mile trek. You should be very proud of her."

Instead of acknowledging his pride he puts his hands on his hips and reads the sign. "'You are now entering over 200,000 acres of wilderness, proceed at your own risk, rescue can be hours away'…can she become injured in the E-Sim?"

I swallow hard. "Well…yeah. I guess you could say that in exchange for a 100% realistic experience we assume the risk of injury. It's very rare, though! A member of my crew has yet to become seriously injured in the E-Sim."

"Seriously injured? So you're saying there have been injuries among your crew?"

I think my upper lip is starting to sweat. "Just...little scrapes and bruises."

"I see. Computer, delete program."

The trail vanishes and the default grid takes its place. What the hell just happened? To say I'm shocked would be an understatement.

"I'm sorry, Captain, but this is for my daughter's safety. You and I both know that she'd be tempted to continue her trek before she's fully healed."

"B-but she's been working on that for months." I finally sputter out.

"I understand, but I'd rather have my daughter angry at me than injured or worse."

Not wanting to get into an argument with a subordinate's father I simply nod. "I suppose that's your right as a father." I don't agree with my statement, but I leave it at that.


	22. Chapter 22

Ed's POV  
16:46

We step inside sickbay to find Kelly, Claire, and Mrs. Kitan sitting in chairs around Alara's bed, chatting up a storm. Whoa. This is Extreme Girl-Talk. Kelly has her right leg crossed over her left and looks completely absorbed in what Mrs. Kitan is saying, so you can tell this is some Major League girl stuff they're talking about.

I won't mention anything about our little E-Sim adventure; doing so would only result in a very unpleasant situation. For now I'm just going to forget it even happened and keep a smile plastered on my face, which shouldn't be hard seeing as how Mr. Kitan is otherwise a very nice guy. He just believes in sabotage in the name of love.

Alara's awake but too tired to participate in girl talk, choosing instead to lie quietly on her side. The back of her gown is open and mom is rubbing some sort of ointment on her bruises, paying special attention to the gnarly purple and red one that's situated over her kidney.

Oooookay, this one's a bit tricky. Her front is still covered and she has blankets on her lower half, but it seems inappropriate for her captain - and her father - to enter the room when she's in this state of undress. Maybe I'm being old-fashioned - it's just her back, after all. Then again, maybe they didn't see us come in and we can tiptoe out without being noticed. We could just go back to the mess hall, have some extra dessert, and - "

"Oh Ildis, Captain, please come in, I was just finishing up here." Mrs. Kitan's sweet voice startles us as we're trying to slink out. Busted. Well that plan really went down the crapper fast. "Dear, I am so glad you reminded me to pack this." She caps the ointment bottle and cleans her hands with a paper towel before closing the back of her daughter's gown and tying the strings. "Oh my, look at the time! You two were gone a while."

"Yes dear, Captain Mercer took me to the mess hall, and might I say that human food is quite appetizing. When you go, you must try the cheeseburger with…what did you call those again?"

"Onion rings."

"Yes! Those were fantastic! You'll have to supply me with the recipe."

"Not gonna lie, I think Chef just opens a bag of frozen onion rings and dumps them in the deep-fryer…"

"We'll make sure you have a few bags to bring home with you." Kelly interjects. She places her hands on her knees to hoist herself out of her chair. "Anyway, how about I bring you to the mess hall, Mrs. Kitan? You must be starving."

"Yes, I suppose I am rather hungry. But…" She looks at her daughter and Kelly understands her hesitation.

"You know your daughter is in the best hands here, but we could always bring our food back here if it would make you feel better. We could bring some for Alara, too - if that's alright with you, Claire."

"Yes, please, try to get her to eat something! No dietary restrictions."

"Alara, you hungry? What do you want for dinner?" Kelly asks, bending over until she's on her level.

"Mmm…just some soup, I guess."

"That's it? You know they're serving pizza tonight, right? Want a slice of pizza?"

"Um…sure, I guess…"

I've never seen Alara so uncommitted to pizza.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Mom asks, stroking her cheek.

"Nothing, I'm just not really hungry."

"Well it feels like your fever's gone. Are you still tired?"

Alara nods, closing her eyes, and mom bends down to give her a kiss.

"We'll be back soon, okay, honey?"

"We're gonna bring you something good, Alara, so you better be ready to eat!" Kelly shouts over her shoulder as she nears the door.


	23. Chapter 23

Kelly's POV  
16:51

"…and the synthesizer is over on that wall in case you can't find anything that appeals to you. It makes some pretty decent stuff, although the hand-prepared food is better; I don't think anyone on this ship will argue with me on that."

Mrs. Kitan holds her tray to her chest and scans the room with a smile on her face. "Oh, this is lovely, Commander." She says in that soft, sweet voice of hers. "Everyone sitting and eating together, discussing their days…what a nice environment to work in. Does Alara sit with friends?"

"She sure does. She usually sits with Captain Mercer and myself but sometimes she'll sit with Gordon and Lamarr."

"Oh I'm so glad to hear that. I was so worried when she received her post on this ship that she'd be the 'odd one out'. Her father will be happy to hear that as well. Sometimes I think he worries about her more than I do."

I place a hand on her forearm. "Rest assured, Mrs. Kitan, we're Alara's second family. Now, let's head over to the buffet."

17:13

"He did _what_?"

"Shhhhh, Kelly, she can hear you! Please promise me you won't tell her until she's feeling 100%. I just, I needed to tell _somebody_ so I could vent."

"He knows she's been working on that program for months now, right? You told him that, right?" I'm fuming.

"Yes, I told him how proud he should be that she was getting close to completing the trail. I mean, jeez, I'm proud of her and she's not even my kid!"

"Does mom know?" I sneak a peak at the corner of the room, where Mrs. Kitan is trying to coax her daughter to eat.

"Not unless dad told her."

"Okay, we'll keep it between the two of us until Alara's all better."

"Pinky swear?"

"Ed, I'm not going to - fine, pinky swear."


End file.
